Tag Archives: cafe

Would you like to get involved in the first pay-what-you-feel cafe in South London, run by the Brixton Pound? We’re looking for volunteers to help out on weekday afternoons or weekends – be part of a unique local community project!

The B£ Cafe was set up in July 2016 at 77 Atlantic Road. From the start, it was operating on a pay-what-you-feel basis: meaning customers could decide how much they want to pay for their food and drink. This system means all customers have an opportunity to be generous, or have an affordable experience.

We have partnered up with local organisations and businesses to source the Cafe’s food and drink from local surplus – perfectly edible food that would otherwise be wasted – and turn it into delicious and healthy meals.

The Cafe has also become an art space, hosting exhibitions and shows by local artists, as well as plenty of other community events.

As with all our initiatives the cafe is a not-for-profit, with all revenue supporting the local community via the Brixton Fund.

Would you like to volunteer some of your time to the B£ Cafe? We are looking particularly for people available during afternoons and weekends who could help with preparing food and drinks, serving customers, and telling them more about the B£. Cafe experience would be a plus, but we provide full training + travel and childcare expenses if you need them.

If you can’t make it on the evening but would still be interested in getting involved, drop us an email at info@brixtonpound.org or come by the Cafe for a chat (opening hours are Mon 8am-5:30pm, Tue-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 10am-5pm).

The first pay-what-you-feel cafe in Brixton!

Brixton Pound is excited to announce its newest project: the Brixton Pound cafe! Opening in July 2016 at 77 Atlantic Road, SW9 8PU, it is the first cafe in Brixton where all food and drink will operate on a pay-what-you-feel basis.

This idea (used by many projects, from cafes like ours or The Real Junk Food Project‘s all the way to commercial giants like Radiohead) fits perfectly into Brixton Pound’s ethos and its practice of questioning the traditional money systems and showcasing that viable alternatives exist. A more social economy is possible!

Additionally, we will be sourcing our food from local surplus – perfectly edible food that would otherwise be wasted – and turn it into delicious and healthy meals. We have partnered up with the People’s Fridge, a project run by residents and local food activists from Open Project Night, and with them will lead on food waste and food poverty reduction in the area. We will be collecting surplus from local traders, such as greengrocers Nour Cash & Carry and Faiz Fine Foods who have already pledged their unsold edible produce. If you’re a local business owner and would like to take part in the scheme, please email us at info (at) brixtonpound (dot) org or come by the cafe for a chat.

As part of the Brixton Pound Community Interest Company, the cafe will be a not-for-profit, and all revenue will support our local grants scheme Brixton Fund.

We’re looking forward to welcoming you at 77 Atlantic Road – come along to say hello, have a drink and a bite to eat, use the free wifi, or just hang out in a friendly space.

Community space

Our new space at 77 Atlantic Road allows us to continue the mission of the B£ Shop (which we ran out of one of the Brixton Arches earlier this year) – giving the community an outlet for activity at the very heart of Brixton.

Aside from the cafe space, we’ve got a beautiful and spacious basement downstairs which can be used for meetings, events, workshops, pop-ups, performances, yoga, dance, rehearsals, you name it!

The space is available to rent on a sliding scale, with the option of using it for free. The whole idea of the community space concept is to open up space that’s normally off-limits to community groups to help them do what they want to do.

“Thanks for the opportunity to use the space as it has definitely allowed me to raise my profile and confidence. Other places have requested my workshops for future projects” – Kes, Heart in Art mosaic workshops

“The Brixton Pound shop has been a game-changer for us…Our participants, all of whom are young people from the borough, love learning and planning there. B£ has given us a home in the centre of our town, where we before we had to look outside of our community.” – Amelia, Advocacy Academy

Host or suggest an event or activity

We’re only a small team – so we need your ideas and energy! If you’d like to host an event, or have an idea for something that could happen in the space, come in for a chat or email us at info (at) brixtonpound (dot) org

Over the next few weeks we’ll be featuring pay-by-text businesses giving you some insight into who they are, what they offer and why they support the Brixton Pound. Instead of putting together a traditional blog we’ve decided to make some short videos. We hope you enjoy them! If you do, why not share them on facebook or tweet them?

First up is Café Sitifis. Some of you more eager eyed followers may recall us blogging about them in 2010. The café has now been open for nearly two years and continues to create a buzz on Rushcroft Road, off Coldharbour Lane. See the manager and owner, Nourradine Lalmi, tell you a little more and don’t forget to use pay-by-text when you’re next enjoying one of their delicious cakes!